Case Number 04416

KITCHEN PARTY

The Charge

If they found out, they'd kill me.

Opening Statement

Ever come across one of those well-furnished, immaculate living rooms in
which it seems like no one actually "lives"? In this dark comedy of
suburban pride and prejudice by independent Canadian writer/director Gary Burns,
an obsessively groomed "museum room" takes center stage as Burns casts
a mocking eye at teenagers and adults cutting loose at that sacred tradition of
suburbia, the house party.

Facts of the Case

Keeping his own small party confined to the kitchen is the only way that
Scott (Scott Speedman, Underworld) can hope to avoid sullying his
parent's picture perfect living room. Even a small depression in the
symmetrically vacuumed carpet might give his father a reason to keep him from
moving away to finish his schooling. Scott believes that being forced to attend
the local community college will sentence him to an unproductive life in the
basement like his pothead older brother Steve (Jason Wiles, Beverley Hills
90210).

Meanwhile, Scott's parents (Gillian Barber, Disturbing Behavior and
Kevin McNulty, Mask of Death) have a cocktail party of their own to
attend. As kids start arriving at Scott's with their beer, the adults across
town begin to turn nasty and petty. What starts out as a fairly innocent evening
of mature conversation quickly escalates into a drunken clash of egos and
fists.

Things aren't going well at Scott's either. On his way to the bash, Lester
Jr. (Dave Cox) gets into a minor accident with the mint condition 1970s Beaumont
that he and his dad have painstakingly restored. More disaster strikes when
Scott's ignored girlfriend Tammy (Laura Harris 24) takes off with Steve,
and a kitchen chair falls into the living room, leaving an impression in the
carpet pile. Things continue to spiral out of control until the two parties
eventually collide.

The Evidence

Gary Burns' debut film, 1995's The Suburbanators, drew critical
comparison to Richard Linklater's Slacker with its loose and plot-free
portrayal of a day in the life of young adults loafing around Calgary. Perhaps
wishing to extend the flattering association further, Burns' follow up
Kitchen Party seems to take a page from the book of Dazed and
Confused. Like Dazed, Kitchen Party strives to be a
coming-of-age film centered on a party, but lacks the focus to completely pull
it off. Jumping between parties, and eventually from one catastrophe to another,
the basic story gets lost in a glut of less important plotlines serving Burns'
skewering of affluent suburban life.

Kitchen Party isn't a bad film, just an unsure film, and there are
several things that Burns gets right. A decent job is done to capture the
authentically disenfranchised mindset of the modern teenager. These kids are
frustrated and trapped in a world where their parents care more about
possessions than they do their offspring. Even before the party starts, it's
already ruined -- Scott is unable to escape his overbearing parents in the form
of the living room carpet just as Lester Jr. fears parental reprisal for banging
up the car. In each case, these objects become symbols of oppression, and
prevent the teenagers from enjoying themselves in any capacity.

Usually this would be enough, but Burns can't resist the urge to give every
single kid at the party some kind of unique emotional conflict, and then try to
have that play out dramatically. Although each of these digressions is
interesting and occasionally quite funny, it ultimately proves frustrating, as
it diverts from the main plot -- the question of Scott's sense of
responsibility.

As characters, the parents aren't quite as fleshed out as the teens. Burns
instead depicts the behavior of the adults as exaggerated reflections of their
children. The fathers, especially Scott's, are loud and bigoted, and their
topics of conversation range from cheating on their wives to defending a friend
indicted for soliciting underage prostitutes. The mothers are usually too drunk
to care about anything. Despite all the animosity towards their children (which
is often reciprocated), the achievements and disappointments of their kids
dominate the conversation. By bringing their disparate worlds uneasily together
in the third act, Burns seems to want to offer some sort of resolution, but the
multiple storylines keep a clear-cut ending too far out of reach.

Besides the careening plot directions, there is a basic story flaw that
keeps the film from becoming anything better than just average. I find it highly
unlikely that parents who are obsessed with bragging about the success of their
children would tug the leash so strongly on their son just for denting the
carpet. Why would Scott's father want to sabotage his own social standing among
his peers?

Kitchen Party sports a pristine transfer with bright, solid colors,
even though it doesn't appear to be in its correct aspect ratio -- several of
the scenes appear slightly cramped. The film's stereo track has been needlessly
remixed to 5.1 surround, with the extra channels handling music and occasional
atmospheric effects. Dialogue is clear and full.

A nice selection of extras has been included on this disc. For the
director's commentary, Gary Burns is joined by James McBurney, who played one of
the kids at the party. They keep each other focused, revealing tidbits on where
the story came from and quite a bit about casting. Overall, it's a little
self-conscious, with McBurney pointing out each pause in conversation and
constantly reassuring Burns that the film is decent, despite the director's
embarrassment at some of the scenes. Also included in this release is Fuck
Coke, a four minute anti-corporate short, also starring McBurney. It's
inconsequential but fun, and makes a nice addition. A trailer of Kitchen
Party is included, as is a short compilation of clips from Burns' other
films; however both look like they've been transferred from a VHS source.

Closing Statement

I assumed that the release of this Canadian independent film on DVD was meant
to coincide with Scott Speedman's rising stardom, but I have to congratulate
Vanguard on putting together a much more comprehensive package here. Fans just
looking for a hit of Speedman or some typical teen high jinks along the lines of
Can't Hardly Wait may find themselves inadvertently turned off by
Kitchen Party's heavier overtones, but others might want to pick this up
as rental. Burns is one of the more interesting Canadian directors working
today, and despite some basic problems with his sophomore effort, the film
serves as a nice introduction to his work.

The Verdict

This disc is free to go, but the script is put on probation for possible
subplot addiction. Furthermore, parents and teenagers are ordered to resolve
their differences through song.